Chain locking adaptor

ABSTRACT

The adaptor includes a base attachable to a support and having a hingedly connected cover. A pin member and a hasp member are attached to the base and the cover is apertured to receive said members therethrough. The pin member is adapted to connect the chain to the adaptor and the hasp member is adapted to receive a padlock to lock the adaptor in the closed position securing the chain.

United States Patent n91 Sallee June 18, 1974 1 1 CHAIN LOCKING ADAPTOR [76] Inventor: Aaron D. Sallee, c/o Sallee Engineering Company. 512 Avenue A, Freeman Field, Seymour. 1nd. 47274 Filed: Apr. 19, 1971 Appl. No.2 135.206

[52] U.S. CI 70/58, 70/18, 70/232 [51] Int. Cl E05b 73/00 [58] Field of Search 70/58, 59. 68, 93, 232. 70/234, DIG. 58, 18; 24/116 R; 211/4, 5, 7. 8; 248/203 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 560,923 5/1896 Peter r. 211/8 1,148.614 8/1915 Pastor 211/4 1.577.292 3/1926 Obreiter .l 70/232 X 2.140.489 12/1938 Wise 70/234 X 2.180,117 11/1939 Lipsis 70/234 X 2.616133 11/1952 Peters 211/4 3.319.743 5/1967 Pelavin et a1. 70/68 X 3.690.130 9/1972 Eutzler 70/18 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 618.637 7/1926 France 70/232 89,074 7/1922 Austria 70/59 Primary Examiner-A1bert G. Craig, Jr.

[ 5 7 ABSTRACT The adaptor includes a base attachable to a support and having a hingedly connected cover. A pin member and a hasp member are attached to the base and the cover is apertured to receive said members therethrough. The pin member is adapted to connect the chain to the adaptor and the hasp member is adapted to receive a padlock to lock the adaptor in the closed position securing the chain.

2 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures 1 CHAIN LOCKING ADAPTOR BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates in general to a chain locking device and in particular to an adaptor for interconnecting a padlock and a chain.

It is customary to secure valuable or potentially dangerous articles against theft or loss by chaining then to a support such as a wall. A problem encountered in the case of some articles such as firearms is that a chain having links of a sufficiently small size to pass through a convenient attachment point, such as the trigger guard, is too small to be adapted for use with a heavy padlock. Thus while high strength, small link chains are available, they have been limited to use with small, relatively weak padlocks.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This chain adaptor provides an indirect means of attaching a chain to a padlock so that a heavy padlock may be used in conjunction with a chain having relatively small links. Thus valuable articles such as firearms may be conveniently secured to a wall or other support. I

The adaptor includes a base portion adapted to be mounted to a support and a cover portion hingedly 'attached to said base portion for swinging movement between open and closed positions. The adaptor includes a pin, adapted to retain a chain when the cover portion is closed, and a hasp, which projects outwardly of the cover portion and is adapted to receive a padlock to lock the cover portion in the closed position.

The hasp is attached to the base portion and the cover portion includes a slot receiving the hasp therethrough. The pin is attached to the base portion and the cover portion includes an aperture receiving said pin, the aperture being of a size to provide a bearing for the pm. I

The base portion includes an aperture receiving fastener means for mounting the adaptor to a support. The base and cover portions cooperate in the closed position toprovide a substantially inaccessible container thereby precluding removal of the fastener means.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION or THE DRAWING FIG. 1 illustrates the adaptor in use with a chain and padlock;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2--2 of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an end view of the adaptor;

FIG. 4 is an elevational view showing the adaptor in the open position;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 4; and

H6. 6 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line 6-6 of FIG. 4.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now by characters of reference to the drawing and first to FIG. 1, it will be understood that the adaptor 10 is intended for use with a chain 11 having links too small to be accommodated directly upon the hasp of a relatively large padlock 12.

The adaptor 10 includes a base 13, constituting a first plate portion and having an aperture 14, which provides a means by which the base 13 is attached to a support, such as the wall 15, by means of a fastener 16. The base 13 includes a backwall 19 and sidewalls 20 and 21 respectively, spaced from each other to provide upper and lower gaps 22. The base also includes front and rear end walls 23 and 24. The backwall, sidewalls, and end walls are integrally formed as by welding. A pin 25, constituting a chain retaining means, and U- shaped hasp 26 are attached to the backwall 19, as by riveting.

A cover 27, constituting a second plate portion is hingedly attached to the base 13 for movement between an open and closed position. It will be understood that the hinged end of the cover 27 is formed into a socket 30 adapted to receive a hinge pin 31 extending betweenopposed sidewalls 21 of the base 13, said sidewalls 21 being apertured for this purpose. The cover 27, which is swingingly related to the base 13, includes a slot 32 and an aperture 33. The slot 32 and aperture 33 are disposed in the cover 27 and are compatibly configurated to receive the hasp 26 and the pin 25 respectively.

The diameter of the pin 25 is sufficiently small to permit a pair of links 34 and 35 at opposite ends of the looped chain 11 to be placed thereon and the pin 25 is sufficiently long to accommodate such links, as indicated in FIG. 2. As indicated in FIG. 1, the chain loop is received into the interior of the base 13 through the upper gap 22 and excess chain passes out through the lower gap 22.

It will be observed that the hasp 26 and the pin 25 are attached to the backwall 19 in cantilever relation and project outwardly beyond the cover 27 in the closed position as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Thus, when the cover 27 is closed, the hasp 18 of the padlock 12 may be inserted through the hasp 26 of the adaptor 10 to preclude opening of the cover 27. Further, the projection of the pin 25 beyond the cover 27 provides the advantage that any signiflcant force applied to the chain 11 will cause the pin 25 to be brought into bearing engagement with the margin of the aperture 33, which is substantially the same size as the pin diameter. Thus, under significant load the pin 25 is supported at each end rather than being merely a cantilever and provides a considerably stronger retaining means for the chain 11.

It is thought that the functional advantages of this chain locking adaptor have become fully apparent from the foregoing description of parts, but for completeness of disclosure the usage of the device will be briefly summarized.

The base 13 of the adaptor 10 is attachable by means of fastener 16 to a wall 15 or similar support. When it is desired to secure an object such as a rifle by means of a chain 11, which is small enough to he slipped through the finger guard of a rifle, said chain 11 is formed into a loop by placing links 34 and 35 over the pin 25. The cover 27 may then be swung from the open position to the closed position. The structural arrangement of the cover 27 relative to the base 13 issuch that when the cover 27 and backwall 19 are substantially parallel, they are spaced from each other. This is achieved in the preferred embodiment by spacing the axis of the hinge from the backwall 19. The base 13 and the cover 27 cooperate to provide: in effect a container concealing the connection of the chain links 34 and 35 to the pin 25. The spacing of the center of rotation of the cover 27 is such, in the preferred embodiment, that the two chain links 34 and 35 are easily accommodated between the inner faces of the backwall 19 and the cover 27. When the cover 27 is closed, the pin 25 and the hasp 26 project through the cover. The hasp 18 of the padlock 12 is inserted within the portion of the adaptor hasp 26 projecting outwardly of the cover 27 whereby to preclude opening of the cover 27. It will be understood that the sidewalls 20 and 21, the end walls 23 and 24 and the cover 27 cooperate to preclude ac cess to the fastener 16 when the padlock 12 is in position.

I claim as my invention:

1. A support mounted chain locking adaptor for connecting a padlock to a chain comprising:

a. a base portion adapted to be mounted to a support,

b. a cover portion hingedly attached to said base por tion for movement between an open and closed position, said cover portion including a first aperture,

c. pin means attached to one of said portions and adaptedto extend through a chain link to retain said chain between said base and cover portions,

d. hasp means attached to the base portion, said hasp means being received in, and extending through, the first aperture in clearance relation thereto in the closed position, said hasp means being adapted to receive the padlock to maintain said closed position,

e. the base portion including an aperture,

f fastening means extending through said aperture to mount the base portion to the support, and

g. the base portion including side portions spaced from each other to provide opposed gaps having a width at least equal to the widest transverse dimension of the chain for receiving the chain yet substantially precluding access to said fastening means.

2. In a chain locking adaptor assembly:

a. a padlock including a hasp,

b. a chain including at least one link too small to receive said hasp, and

c. an adaptor including:

1. a base portion, 2. a cover portion hingedly attached to said base portion for movement between an open and closed position, said portions being substantially 4. hasp means attached to the base portion and extending through the first aperture in the closed position, said hasp means being adapted to receive the padlock hasp to maintain said closed position. 

1. A support mounted chain locking adaptor for connecting a padlock to a chain comprising: a. a base portion adapted to be mounted to a support, b. a cover portion hingedly attached to said base portion for movement between an open and closed position, said cover portion including a first aperture, c. pin means attached to one of said portions and adapted to extend through a chain link to retain said chain between said base and cover portions, d. hasp means attached to the base portion, said hasp means being received in, and extending through, the first aperture in clearance relation thereto in the closed position, said hasp means being adapted to receive the padlock to maintain said closed position, e. the base portion including an aperture, f. fastening means extending through said aperture to mount the base portion to the support, and g. the base portion including side portions spaced from each other to provide opposed gaps having a width at least equal to the widest transverse dimension of the chain for receiving the chain yet substantially precluding access to said fastening means.
 2. a cover portion hingedly attached to said base portion for movement between an open and closed position, said portions being substantially parallel to each other in the closed position said cover portion including a first aperture,
 2. In a chain locking adaptor assembly: a. a padlock including a hasp, b. a chain including at least one link too small to receive said hasp, and c. an adaptor including:
 3. pin means attached to said base portion in substantially perpendicular relation and of a size smaller than said padlock hasp to extend through said chain link to retain said chain between said base and cover portions, and
 4. hasp means attached to the base portion and extending through the first aperture in the closed position, said hasp means being adapted to receive the padlock hasp to maintain said closed position. 